Residential
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June 04, 2025
Ohio Justice Questions School Board's Tax Appeal Claim
An Ohio justice criticized a school board's claim that state law allows it to appeal administrative property valuation rulings to county courts when the board doesn't own the property at issue.
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June 04, 2025
Nashville Mixed-Use Megaproject Wins $25M Early Loan
Miami-based lender BridgeInvest said it has provided a $25 million loan to refinance and pay for early development costs of a site in Nashville, Tennessee, set to include an apartment tower, luxury condos and an upscale hotel.
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June 03, 2025
Prosecutors Take Second Stab At Convicting Dallas Developer
Federal prosecutors started a second run at convicting a Dallas real estate developer of bribing two city council members, telling a jury during opening arguments Tuesday that the developer had a "silent partnership" with elected officials in exchange for favors.
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June 03, 2025
2 Texans, Firm Owe $5.3M In SEC House-Flipping Fraud Suit
A pair of Texas men and their investment company must give the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission nearly $5.3 million to resolve claims they defrauded investors in a house-flipping scheme, misappropriating $2.9 million and misrepresenting that certain property interests would secure certain investor funds.
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June 03, 2025
Wash. Judge Clears The Way For Redfin Merger Vote
A Washington federal judge on Tuesday refused to stop Redfin shareholders from voting Wednesday on a $1.75 billion merger with Rocket Cos., finding that with new disclosures made by the company, investors have enough information to make an informed decision.
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June 03, 2025
Conn. Real Estate Execs Say Investors Weaponized Courts
Three executives for a real estate development firm have accused their former business partners in Connecticut Superior Court of weaponizing the courts to lodge "a multi-year, multi-forum legal assault" with "fabricated" claims.
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June 03, 2025
Invitation Homes Starts Lending Effort, Buys $100M In Homes
Invitation Homes said it spent more than $100 million to acquire about 300 newly built single-family homes while it launched a developer lending program with a $32.7 million loan to a Houston homebuilder.
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June 03, 2025
Texas Gives Some Property Owners More Time To Pay Taxes
Some Texas property owners whose taxing authorities allow bills to be paid in two installments will get more time to make their initial payment under legislation signed by Gov. Greg Abbott.
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June 03, 2025
Starwood Capital Raises $2.9B For Private Credit Funds
Starwood Capital Group announced Tuesday that it has closed a series of private credit vehicles focused on the U.S., Europe and Australia after securing a total of $2.86 billion in capital commitments from investors.
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June 03, 2025
The Law360 400: A Look At The Top 100 Firms
A rebound in client work sent the nation’s largest law firms into growth mode last year, driving a wave of hiring, mergers and strategic moves that reshaped the top tier of the Law360 400. Here's a preview of the 100 firms with the largest U.S. attorney headcounts.
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June 03, 2025
Text To Sanctions Trial Witness Just An 'Error,' Judge Agrees
A Manhattan federal judge declined on Tuesday to revoke bail for a businessman accused of helping a Russian banker evade sanctions on assets worth nearly $150 million, after his lawyer said his text to a trial witness was merely a phone flub.
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June 03, 2025
Real Estate Lawyers On The Move
Vedder Price, BakerHostetler and Clifford Chance are among the law firms that have made recent real estate or construction hires.
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June 02, 2025
Rocket Cos. Board Beats Investor's $500M Insider Trading Suit
Delaware's Court of Chancery on Monday dismissed a derivative shareholder suit accusing Rocket Companies Inc.'s board, chairman and controlling stockholder of breaching their fiduciary duties by liquidating $500 million worth of stock allegedly based on material nonpublic information, saying the plaintiffs have failed to show a motive.
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June 02, 2025
Budget Bill Would Deepen Residential Solar's Woes
A Sunnova unit's bankruptcy declaration — the latest among dozens of solar companies that have struggled to stay afloat — adds to evidence of a floundering residential solar industry, which now faces further diminishing prospects under the federal budget reconciliation bill.
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June 02, 2025
Landlord To Quit Pricing Software To Escape Antitrust Suit
William C. Smith & Co. will be stepping out of litigation accusing the company of using property management platform RealPage to conspire with other landlords and fix the price of rentals in the D.C. area, after agreeing to reform its business practices and shell out over $1 million.
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June 02, 2025
Seattle Owner Questions Insurer's $8.5M Water Damage Denial
A Seattle building owner urged a Washington federal court to grant it a partial early win in a coverage dispute over $8.5 million in water damage, telling the court that under state law, none of the four exclusions its insurer cited when denying coverage are applicable to the water intrusion loss.
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June 02, 2025
Sacramento County Inks Encampment ADA Settlement
The county of Sacramento and a proposed class of residents with disabilities told a California federal court on Monday they have reached a tentative deal amid a suit alleging the city and county violated various state and federal laws by allowing homeless encampments to block sidewalks.
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June 02, 2025
Squire Patton Boggs Advises US Land Banking Partnership
Squire Patton Boggs LLP guided Walton Global on a partnership with GoldenTree Asset Management to make investments in lot banking transactions in high-growth U.S. markets.
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June 02, 2025
Tax Court Cuts $21M Off Former Ga. Quarry's Deduction Value
A donated 85-acre land plot in Georgia originally valued at nearly $22 million should have been valued around $193,000, the U.S. Tax Court found Monday, agreeing with the Internal Revenue Service.
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June 02, 2025
PG&E, Lenders Hit With Suit Over Solar Panel 'Scheme'
Pacific Gas & Electric Corp. and several other companies were accused in California federal court of running a "bait-and-switch" scheme in which they saddle homeowners with hidden fees after tricking them into financing solar panel installations through zero-interest loans.
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June 02, 2025
Insurer Not Liable For $8.5M Florida Condo Defect Damages
A Florida federal judge freed an insurer from paying any of the $8.5 million in damages connected to shoddy work at a Florida condo, finding there wasn't an allocation accounting for which claims were covered and which claims were not in an agreement between the condo and a contractor.
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June 02, 2025
Healthcare REIT Lands $94M In Mortgages For Senior Housing
Diversified Healthcare Trust announced Monday that it closed on two mortgages secured by six properties totaling $94.3 million, which it plans to use to pay down high interest rate senior notes due in June.
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June 02, 2025
McGuireWoods Guides Bronx Multifamily Portfolio Loan
McGuireWoods LLP advised financing secured by a 2.1 million-square-foot affordable housing portfolio in the Bronx that was acquired last month by Longacre Group from Related Fund Management.
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June 02, 2025
NYC Real Estate Week In Review
Greenberg Traurig and Schulte Roth are among the law firms that landed work on the largest New York City real estate trades that hit public records last week, with a nine-figure Brooklyn deal topping the list.
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June 02, 2025
Texas Voters To Decide On Fire-Ruined Homestead Tax Break
Texas voters will decide whether to amend the state's constitution to authorize a temporary property tax exemption for homesteads destroyed by fire under a joint resolution approved by state lawmakers and filed with the secretary of state.
Expert Analysis
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Expect CFPB To Enforce Warning Against 'Coercive' Fine Print
The recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau warning against unenforceable terms "deceptively" slipped into the fine print of contracts will likely be challenged in court, but until then, companies should expect the agency to treat its guidance as law and must carefully scrutinize their consumer contracts, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.
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How NJ Worker Status Ruling Benefits Real Estate Industry
In Kennedy v. Weichert, the New Jersey Supreme Court recently said a real estate agent’s employment contract would supersede the usual ABC test analysis to determine his classification as an independent contractor, preserving operational flexibility for the industry — and potentially others, say Jason Finkelstein and Dalila Haden at Cole Schotz.
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7th Circ Joins Trend Of No CGL Coverage For Structural Flaws
The Seventh Circuit, which recently held potential structural instability did not count as property damage under a construction company's commercial general liability policy, joins a growing consensus that faulty work does not implicate coverage without tangible and present damage to the project, say Sarah Abrams at Baleen Specialty, and Elan Kandel and James Talbert at Bailey Cavalieri.
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In The CFPB Playbook: Making Good On Bold Promises
The U.S. Supreme Court's decision upholding the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's funding structure in the second quarter cleared the way for the bureau to resume a number of high-priority initiatives, and it appears poised to charge ahead in working toward its aggressive preelection agenda, say Andrew Arculin and Paula Vigo Marqués at Blank Rome.
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FBI Raid Signals Growing Criminal Enforcement Of Algorithms
The U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division's increased willingness to pursue the use of algorithmic pricing as a potential criminal violation means that companies need to understand the software solutions they employ and stay abreast of antitrust best practices when contracting with providers, say attorneys at Rule Garza.
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State Licensing Pitfalls Mortgage Servicers Must Beware
A recent enforcement action from the Washington Department of Financial Institutions demonstrates how subtle distinctions in state mortgage servicer licensing laws may come as a surprise to some companies, even if they never directly receive payments or interact with borrowers, says Clayton Swears at Hudson Cook.
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Keys To Strong Parking, Storage Contracts For NYC Buildings
Drafting and enforcing unambiguous parking and storage unit license agreements are essential tasks for co-op and condo boards in New York City, with recent cases highlighting how prudent terms can minimize potential headaches, say Matthew Eiben and Adam Lindenbaum at Rosenberg & Estis.
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Realtor Settlement May Create New Antitrust Pitfalls
Following a recent antitrust settlement between the National Association of Realtors and home sellers, practices are set to change and the increased competition may benefit both brokers and homebuyers, but the loss of the customary method of buyer broker compensation could lead to new antitrust concerns, says Colin Ahler at Snell & Wilmer.
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What Fla. Ruling Means For Insurer Managed Repair Programs
A recent Florida state court ruling in Fraga v. Citizens Property Insurance, holding that the insurer could not seek to add additional terms in its managed repair program consent form, should promote clear written contract terms that clarify the relationship between insurers, policyholders and contractors, says Chip Merlin at Merlin Law Group.
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Preparing For CFPB 'Junk Fee' Push Into Mortgage Industry
As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau considers expanding its "junk fee" initiative into mortgage closing costs, mortgage lenders and third parties must develop plans now that anticipate potential rulemaking or enforcement activity in this space, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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NC Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2
After federal banking agencies last quarter released a supplemental final rule updating the Community Reinvestment Act, North Carolina banks involved in community development should consider how the new rule might open up opportunities for investment and services that can benefit underserved areas, says Adam Goldblatt at Michael Best.
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What NYC's Green Fast Track Means For Affordable Housing
New York City's Green Fast Track for Housing initiative, which went into effect last month, aims to speed up the environmental review process for modest residential developments and could potentially pave the way for similar initiatives in other cities, say Vivien Krieger and Rachel Scall at Cozen O'Connor.
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The Often Overlooked NY Foreclosure Notice Requirements
As multifamily real estate defaults mount, New York foreclosing parties should be aware of pitfalls and perils that can await the litigant who is not prepared to ensure adherence with tenant notice requirements under the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law, say Christopher Gorman and John Muldoon at Rosenberg & Estis.